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I wanted to test drive the 35i, but they had none in stock. I was only able to test drive the 28i. The CA, said that he thought it was not necessary, and mostly what he sells is the 28i. (Thinking in my head that the bulk of dealer stock orders are prob 28i) So I took that with a grain of salt.

So my question for those that have test drove both.

How is the difference in acceleration ? I must say the 28i wasn't terribly bad, but it left some to be desired.

Now this will be my wife's primary car, with me driving only when we go some where together. But, I know when I get behind that wheel I will want some "Kick" when I push that peddle !

I had a similar experience when I tried to test an X3 35i – no one had a 35i. The repeated excuse I was told was that the 28i was nearly as good and the 35i was pricey. I did drive a base X3 28i which I found to be unsatisfying – I am 6’ 2” 210 lbs. and I found the seats to be uncomfortable and lacking support. The dealership had a 28i M Sport available that had terrific sport seats, a great steering wheel, and featured a number of other appealing M inspired mods. Although the 28i offered spirited performance I was put off by the initial vibration when starting – but that is probably just an excuse. The real reason? - I do not like the idea of a four cylinder engine generally, especially in a sports oriented SAV costing more than $50K. The three critical options that I would say are essential and transformational beyond Nav/Tech are;-The larger engine – 35i – 0- 60 in 5.3 seconds (Motor Trend) is equal to the 335i. Moreover, the X3 35i M Sport is faster than a Porsche CayenneS and matches the CayenneGTS - this is impressive. Besides impressive - it is just flat out fun!-M Sport – gives you essential sport seats, great M Steering Wheel, great looking 19” wheels, and other nice M tweaks. I am not certain if the very sporty exhaust of my car is part of the M Sport package or is just a feature of the 35i engine but you want it! -DHP – I was on the fence about this one since I could not find a car at any dealer that had this feature and added it after I ordered the car initially. My experience with other BMWs has taught me that this is a critical option. The variable sport EPS, albeit not my M3, is communicative and offers very nice feel. Moreover, while I appreciate the compliant ride that the comfort mode offers, I find that sport and sport+ conjures up the sport sedan DNA lurking within the X3’s bones.The X3 35i M Sport is not only an impressive athletic fun vehicle, but a great BMW.

Capobranco... I appreciate the review... I took would love the M package... However... The wife is stuck on Sparkling Bronze, and they dont offer the M package with bronze !!!

Basically im tossed between the 28 and 35, Since it wont be my daily driver, I may just go with the 28, and when I drive, throw it in sport mode. When I test drove the 28 in sport it wasnt too bad, not really what I was looking for but its about a 5K savings.

I was expecting to get a 28i but ended up with a 35i. My use is similar to you - it is primarily my wife's car but I drive it when we drive somewhere together, which is still pretty often. We bought the 35i mainly because it was the only X3 on the dealer lot optioned the way my wife wanted it and the deal fell nicely into place. It was also the only X3 they had in her preferred color.

Unfortunately, our 35i has been in the shop much of the past three weeks due to a transmission problem. The dealer gave me a 28i for a loaner for the first week and i have to say I was pretty impressed with it. The acceleration seemed peppier from a start compared to my 35i (noticed by my wife as well). I can't rule this out to being caused by my transmission problems though.

Bottom line: My wife would have been fine with a 28i as her daily driver in suburban and freeway driving. For us, I'm guessing the difference between the two would likely show more when the car is fully loaded with passengers in the backseat and cargo - we didn't get to test that scenario. The 35i just has a certain strength and smoothness to it though and I'm still glad to have that engine.

The best way to put it is I have never been "dissatisfied" by the engine in the 28i but have never been truly "satisfied" either. I've decided the 28i fits into a no-man's-land between "weak" and "fun", not weak enough to criticize and not fun enough to fall in love with. If I had never had BMW' with 6's and 8's, I think I would have been very content. But I know what a powerful BMW feels like, and the 28i is not one.

I thought I'd save the 5 grand, and I don't much regret saving the 5 grand and giving up the power it would've bought, but if I was starting over with a clean piece of paper, I'd probably get the 35i.

The best way to put it is I have never been "dissatisfied" by the engine in the 28i but have never been truly "satisfied" either. I've decided the 28i fits into a no-man's-land between "weak" and "fun", not weak enough to criticize and not fun enough to fall in love with. If I had never had BMW' with 6's and 8's, I think I would have been very content. But I know what a powerful BMW feels like, and the 28i is not one.

I thought I'd save the 5 grand, and I don't much regret saving the 5 grand and giving up the power it would've bought, but if I was starting over with a clean piece of paper, I'd probably get the 35i.

I forget the pricing now when I purchased mine but I thought that depending on what options you wanted, with some some being included in the base price, the $5K gap was reduced. I could be wrong and didn't go back to verify this thought.

I forget the pricing now when I purchased mine but I thought that depending on what options you wanted, with some some being included in the base price, the $5K gap was reduced. I could be wrong and didn't go back to verify this thought.

I'm pretty sure you're right about that. I've seen figures as low as $2700 or $3k when the comparo is truly apples to apples. In truth, if I'd known that it netted out to $3k or so once everything was normalized across options, I would've bought the 35i. And I think I would recommend to anyone who could afford it to go with the 35i. But having a 28i I am not unhappy with it.

One thing that's odd about the X3 is the quantity of approving looks and comments from passers-by. In 9 years of having my X5 I never got the # of people strolling over to chit chat about the vehicle as I have in the first two months of the X3. I get a lot of "I really want one of those" and "I love that car." Especially from neighbors. For some reason, this particular model is on the wish-list and radar screen of a lot of people. Could be because it's a bit more accessible price-wise, that is to say, an object of lust for non-BMW owners looking to take it up a notch, versus an M5 or something that they flat out cannot afford and therefore don't bother to pay any attention to -- who knows? Wish they weren't 3/4 women though LOL

I'm pretty sure you're right about that. I've seen figures as low as $2700 or $3k when the comparo is truly apples to apples. In truth, if I'd known that it netted out to $3k or so once everything was normalized across options, I would've bought the 35i. And I think I would recommend to anyone who could afford it to go with the 35i. But having a 28i I am not unhappy with it.

One thing that's odd about the X3 is the quantity of approving looks and comments from passers-by. In 9 years of having my X5 I never got the # of people strolling over to chit chat about the vehicle as I have in the first two months of the X3. I get a lot of "I really want one of those" and "I love that car." Especially from neighbors. For some reason, this particular model is on the wish-list and radar screen of a lot of people. Could be because it's a bit more accessible price-wise, that is to say, an object of lust for non-BMW owners looking to take it up a notch, versus an M5 or something that they flat out cannot afford and therefore don't bother to pay any attention to -- who knows? Wish they weren't 3/4 women though LOL

For the difference of about 2 MPG and the price difference the way I had it optioned, I ended up going with the 35i but could have been happy with the 28i. Funny you mentioned M5. I had a couple of E39 M5's (which was quite the car in its day) but later models priced me out of that market, especially as I got older and focused more of my funds on retirement savings.

For the difference of about 2 MPG and the price difference the way I had it optioned, I ended up going with the 35i but could have been happy with the 28i. Funny you mentioned M5. I had a couple of E39 M5's (which was quite the car in its day) but later models priced me out of that market, especially as I got older and focused more of my funds on retirement savings.

Agreed...the pricing has gone haywire. My X5 ran me $52,000 in 2002, and when I looked into getting a replacement X5 with the same option set (more or less) it was north of $80,000. (Which is pretty much how I got to the X3). I've owned a handful of really great BMWs over the years that were affordable when I got them, but are not really in my price range now. My E36 M3, which I loved like life itself, was $35,000. Like you, I'm heading toward heading toward starting to think about retirement, and I guess that exerts downward pressure on the price point at which too much pain is occurring. If I were 30 I'd probably get an X6. Those, I really dig.

I went with the 28. I traded in a 2009 X3 and and the 28 felt the same as the 6 that was in the 2009 (except the 28 feels a lot smoother to me). For an SUV, I mean SAV, the 28 is plenty power for me and Sport and Sport + is a bonus. I put the 3-5k I saved into DHP and premium audio and never looked back. I too have to think about retirement but I'm putting off those thoughts until I replace my wifes 328xi ... we are thinking convertable but living in New Hampshire... well guess thats a discussion for another thread.

I got 28i also, I think it is overall very good SUV with that engine, if you want to compare with Porsche Cayenne S then 35i is very comparable with better price, for every day use 28i will be fine, I do recommend to test drive before spending the money on expensive purchase so there will not be buyer's regret.

I wanted to test drive the 35i, but they had none in stock. I was only able to test drive the 28i. The CA, said that he thought it was not necessary, and mostly what he sells is the 28i. (Thinking in my head that the bulk of dealer stock orders are prob 28i) So I took that with a grain of salt.

So my question for those that have test drove both.

How is the difference in acceleration ? I must say the 28i wasn't terribly bad, but it left some to be desired.

Now this will be my wife's primary car, with me driving only when we go some where together. But, I know when I get behind that wheel I will want some "Kick" when I push that peddle !

Whats your thoughts ??

Only downside of N55 engine is really poor gas mileage. I get about 18 combined! A long way down from my last car which got 33 mpg all day long.

Agreed...the pricing has gone haywire. My X5 ran me $52,000 in 2002, and when I looked into getting a replacement X5 with the same option set (more or less) it was north of $80,000. (Which is pretty much how I got to the X3). I've owned a handful of really great BMWs over the years that were affordable when I got them, but are not really in my price range now. My E36 M3, which I loved like life itself, was $35,000. Like you, I'm heading toward heading toward starting to think about retirement, and I guess that exerts downward pressure on the price point at which too much pain is occurring. If I were 30 I'd probably get an X6. Those, I really dig.

Well the current x3 is actual the same size as the 02 x5. It has more hp/trq gets better mpg has loads more features. Not to mention the time value of money thing. I agree on the x6.

If your are a Enthusiast You would want to definitely go with the N55
If you just a regular driver that wants good economy with a mix of performance, then go with the N20.
If you add the M-Spot Package, it would add more value to the car when it comes to resale time.

I have a 35i and reeally like the extra power but I only get only 16 to 18 MPG in city driving and 22 to 25 on the highway. I've averaged about 20 MPG overall. I'm in Califonia though and we have specially formated gas due to environmental regulations which results in somewhat worse gas mileage than other states in the US. That being said, if you drive the car hard, you going to see your gas mileage go down more in the 35i than the 28i.

I must say, my original post has spurred quite the response. Just from a point of regrets, I think I will go with the 35i. I found a dealer about an hour away with one in stock, and might drive up there check it out first.

I must say, my original post has spurred quite the response. Just from a point of regrets, I think I will go with the 35i. I found a dealer about an hour away with one in stock, and might drive up there check it out first.

Are you going to buy a used or new one?

If new, you might want to customize it. You definitely don't want a new x3 in their showroom because there is a lot missing from what the driver needs, basically it's like barebones.